Making Movie History: Anne Claire Poirier

Anne Claire Poirier blazed a trail for women filmmakers, introducing a distinctly female gaze into Quebec cinema with compelling personal films that balanced rigorous filmcraft with feminist analysis. Beginning her career in the ’60s, when few women were making films, she persevered, insisting on directing her own work. The experience of making De mère en fille (1968), Quebec’s first feminist film, would steel her resolve—to bring more women into the NFB. Tenacious and generous, she initiated and produced En tant que femmes (1972), a six-film series directed by various women. Her own work, including the unrelentingly powerful Mourir à tue-tête (1979), continues to resonate. Her final film for the NFB, perhaps her bravest and most painful, was Tu as crié LET ME GO, dealing with the tragic loss of her own daughter.